Bass of the Week: Blast Cult Gateway

by Kevin Johnson Monday, August 24th, 2020

Jason Burns of Blast Cult has been building upright basses for years, but lately, he’s been getting more into the electric side of things with models like the Thirty Two and the Magic 13. His passion for basses of both kinds led to the creation of the Gateway Bass, a bass guitar that carries many of the aspects of a double bass. As a result, Blast Cult says it “sounds more like a double bass than an electric guitar.”

Its stripped-down look includes a blue pine wormwood body and a maple neck. The crossover really starts at the ebony fingerboard, but even more apparent is the use of double bass strings. Burns fits the Gateway with an active piezo pickup system for double bass with active tone controls.

Get the scoop from Burns himself:

Blast Cult Gateway Bass Specs:

Scale:	32″
Body:	Blue Pine Wormwood
Neck:	Maple
Fingerboard:	Ebony
Pickup:	Active Piezo Double Bass pickup system
Electronics:	Active Tone Controls
Strings:	Blast Cult Double Bass Strings

In his time with No Treble, Kevin has met hundreds of amazing bassists and interviewed icons like Jack Casady, Victor Wooten, Les Claypool, Marcus Miller, and more. He's a gigging bassist performing jazz in Northern Virginia and bluegrass with The Plate Scrapers up and down the East Coast. Kevin appreciates all genres of music, from R&B to metal and everything in between. Connect with Kevin on Facebook and check his performance schedule on his website.